DA reverses earlier 'no charges' statement in fatal U.S. 70 crash

By James Staley / jstaley@lcsun-news.com

Posted:
02/07/2013 03:08:03 PM MST

Click photo to enlarge

Geno Angel of R2 Contractors Specialty, Inc. places extra tires around the barrels that line U.S. 70 on Thursday, in order to ensure they don't blow over in windy conditions, Angel said. Workers are preparing to install a 40-inch-high cable barrier along a 10-mile stretch of the highway on the East Mesa where a double-fatality crash happened last Halloween. The District Attorney's Office is "reconsidering prosecutorial options" in light of "recently revealed evidence" in the crash.

LAS CRUCES — Hours after the district attorney announced publicly that no criminal charges would be filed against the driver who caused last Halloween's deadly U.S. 70 crash, a spokeswoman from his office told the Sun-News on Thursday night "recently revealed evidence" could change that.

Speaking earlier in the afternoon at a town hall-type forum, 3rd Judicial District Attorney Mark D'Antonio said he opted not to pursue criminal charges against Shauna Halladay, the driver who caused a crash killing two, citing a lack of evidence.

"We declined with a heavy heart," D'Antonio said in the afternoon.

More than six hours later, D'Antonio's spokeswoman sent a text message to the Sun-News, which read: "In light of recently revealed evidence, the district attorney's office is reconsidering prosecutorial options" regarding the crash that left dead a woman and her teenage son.

The spokeswoman declined to discuss the nature of the evidence, but said it was brought to the office's attention on a drive to Santa Fe.

D'Antonio and his staff are there to work with legislators.

After an investigation that lasted nearly three months, Las Cruces Police reported Halladay was driving westbound on U.S. 70 when she suddenly drove her Isuzu Rodeo into the median.

Advertisement

Without a barrier, Halladay's SUV ramped into the air as it left the median, hitting an eastbout sedan carrying the woman and her 15-year-old son, an Oñate High student.

A $2.5 million state project is under way, installing a cable barrier in the median of that notorious stretch of highway.

In November, LCPD filed a search warrant in Magistrate Court to determine if Halladay had been texting at the time of the crash. Police found an iPhone cued to a texting screen inside her damaged SUV, then received an anonymous tip she was manipulating that phone moments before the crash.

In December, LCPD closed the case without filing charges.

At the forum, which was the first of monthly events D'Antonio plans to hold at the Dona Ana County Government Center, he said there was ultimately no evidence of negligence.

"The evidence shows us that we have no reason why she jerked that wheel to the left. We looked through phone records," he said Thursday afternoon. "She wasn't in the act of texting (or talking on the phone)."

He added that the Crime Stoppers tip could not be substantiated. Police interviewed multiple witnesses of the crash, according to supplemental reports released this week, though only one saw the entire horrific scene and that person didn't know why Halladay's car swerved.

Halladay told police she was cut off, then veered off the highway. That, too, could not be confirmed.

Halladay's mother previously referred all questions to Halladay's attorney, Mark Pickett. He could not be reached for comment Thursday.

D'Antonio's announcement came just days after New Mexico State University Police said the DA's office also declined charges in the crash that eventually killed a Doña Ana Community College instructor.

The woman, Dr. Lucy Montes-Sandoval, was in a crosswalk on campus when Catherine Parra, 22, hit her. Parra told police she looked down at the car's radio and didn't see Montes-Sandoval, who died eight days later in El Paso from severe head injuries.

D'Antonio expressed empathy for the victims and those touched by the fatal crashes. But, he added, that's not part of his legal consideration.

"I don't have the luxury, as your DA, to bring emotions into my factoring," he said.

Added D'Antonio: "I promise you that now, in the future, in those kind of cases, if there is any kind of criminal negligence that comes forward, I will prosecute it vigorously.

"But I have to remove my emotions from the decision. I have to base it on the facts of the case, the way the investigators bring it to me, and the law."

James Staley may be reached at 575-541-5476. Follow him on Twitter @auguststaley.

UPDATED: 6:45 p.m.

LAS CRUCES — A head-on car crash last Halloween took the life of a teenager and his mother, leaving many in Las Cruces saddened and concerned about the safety along U.S. 70.

But it won't result in any criminal charges against the driver who caused the deadly crash.

"We declined the case with a heavy heart," said 3rd Judicial District Attorney Mark D'Antonio, speaking Thursday afternoon at a town hall-type forum inside the Doña Ana County Government Center.

After an investigation that lasted nearly three months, Las Cruces Police reported Shauna Halladay was driving westbound on U.S. 70 when she suddenly drove her Isuzu Rodeo into the median.

Without a barrier, Halladay's SUV ramped into the air as it left the median, hitting an eastbout sedan carrying the woman and her 15-year-old son.

A $2.5 million state project is underway, installing a cable barrier in the median of that notorious stretch of highway.

In November, LCPD filed a search warrant in Magistrate Court, to determine if Halladay had been texting at the time of the crash. Police found an iPhone cued to a texting screen inside her damaged SUV, then received an anonymous tip she was manipulating that phone moments before the crash.

In December, LCPD closed the case without filing charges.

D'Antonio agreed with the police investigation's findings. It remains possible, however, that civil cases could be filed in court.

"There was no evidence of anything. It's inexplicable," D'Antonio said after the forum. "The evidence shows us that we have no reason why she jerked that wheel to the left. We looked through phone records. She wasn't in the act of texting (or talking on the phone)."

He added that the Crime Stoppers tip could not be substantiated. Police interviewed multiple witnesses of the crash, according to supplemental reports released this week, though only one saw the entire horrific scene and that person didn't know why Halladay's car swerved.

Halladay told police she was cutoff, then veered off the highway. That too could not be confirmed.

D'Antonio's announcement came just days after New Mexico State University Police said the DA's office also declined charges in the crash that eventually killed a Doña Ana Community College instructor.

The woman, Dr. Lucy Montes-Sandoval, was in a crosswalk on campus when Catherine Parra, 22, hit her. Parra told police she looked down at the car's radio and didn't see Montes-Sandoval, who died eight days later in El Paso from severe head injuries.

D'Antonio expressed empathy for the victims and those touched by the fatal crashes. But, he added, that's not part of his legal consideration.

"I don't have the luxury, as your DA, to bring emotions into my factoring," he said.

Added D'Antonio: "I promise you that now, in the future, in those kind of cases, if there is any kind of criminal negligence that comes forward, I will prosecute it vigorously.

"But I have to remove my emotions from the decision. I have to base it on the facts of the case, the way the investigators bring it to me, and the law."

James Staley may be reached at 575-541-5476. Follow him on Twitter @auguststaley.